Israeli airstrikes continued on August 2, 2026, killing at least 8 to 9 Palestinians across Gaza including Gaza City, Deir al-Balah, and Khan Younis, Palestinian officials said [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7]. Several families, including couples and children, died in strikes targeting residential apartments and tents [1, 2, 3, 4, 6, 7].

Israeli Energy Minister Eli Cohen said on August 2 there was no deal to halt attacks and that Israel currently controls about 60 to 70 percent of the Gaza Strip [1, 8, 2, 9, 5]. Cohen added Israel would only withdraw if Hamas disarms and may need to take full control of Gaza. He stated, "There was no deal to halt attacks on Gaza and we must take full control of it if Hamas does not disarm" [1].

Palestinian health officials reported the strikes hit multiple civilian sites including homes, tents for displaced persons, and vehicles, causing repeated displacement among Gaza's 2 million residents [1, 2, 3, 4]. Gaza residents described near-constant attacks with planes striking across northern, central, and southern parts of the territory. Aya Mohammad Zaki said, "It was as if the war has resumed, there was an attack every one hour or less, and the planes struck places across the Gaza Strip, north, central and south, everywhere" [8]. Soumah Dawla added, "We are waiting for displacement at any moment ... Our entire life is gone, our entire future is gone, our children's future is gone" [8].

The ceasefire accord reached in October 2025 has not been fully implemented. Hamas demands Israel stop military operations and withdraw before handing over weapons for storage, while Israel insists Hamas must genuinely disarm and destroy tunnels first [1, 10, 8, 2, 3, 4, 7]. The deadlock has stalled ceasefire progress despite a July 30 announcement by US President Donald Trump of a breakthrough agreement, including phased Israeli withdrawal and Hamas disarmament [10, 8, 11, 3, 4, 7].

Since the ceasefire began, at least 1,230 Palestinians have been killed in Israeli strikes, according to Palestinian health sources and independent counts [1, 5]. The Israeli-controlled area in Gaza has expanded, leaving about two-thirds of the territory depopulated due to repeated displacement [10, 8, 11].

The conflict remains tense as Israel controls a majority of Gaza. Continued airstrikes on August 2 show no immediate end in sight to hostilities or the stalled ceasefire implementation [1, 9, 5].